Why Venus Williams and other sports stars are playing longer

Venus Williams has consistently broken records and barriers across a 32-year tennis career decorated by five Olympic medals, seven Grand Slam singles titles and 14 doubles Grand Slams with her sister, Serena. This month, she'll add another record and break another barrier, becoming the oldest woman to play singles at the Australian Open.

At 45, Williams — handed a wildcard for the tournament — is 27 years older than the youngest player in the women's draw, fellow American Iva Jovic. By the time Jovic, 18, was born in 2007, Williams had already won four singles grand slams.

The older Williams sister has said her love for the sport, rather than notions of adding to her honors list, motivate her and that sticking to her schedule despite gaps in playing tournaments has aided her longevity.

"I stopped running [long] distances a few years ago. That's the only thing I've changed," she told a press conference ahead of a warmup tournament in New Zealand.

"But other than that, I've kept a similar routine. Even in all the years I wasn't playing, I was always in the gym as if I had a match the next day, so that helps me whenever I come back to play. I do come back fit. I come back strong without missing a beat."

While elite athletes competing into their forties and beyond is not so unusual in less physical sports, elite athletes in demanding sports appear to be able to sustain a career longer now than ever before. LeBron James, 41, is still playing top level basketball, Cristiano Ronaldo will likely play in this year's football World Cup at 41 and former India cricket captain MS Dhoni is again expected to feature in this year's Indian Premier League (IPL) at 44.

"Population aging is not only increasing the average age of citizens but the average ages of elite sport participants too," Dr. Rafal Chomik of the  UNSW Centre for Population Ageing Research (CEPAR) in Sydney, Australia told DW.

"There are a number of likely explanations, including improvements in sports science, equipment innovation, and training regimes which are sport-specific, but there are also the wider societal trends that combine medical innovations and better health behaviors that shift all of us towards longer, healthier lives, including athletes."

CEPAR conducted a study of Olympic athlete ages at the Tokyo Games in 2021. It found that the average age of Olympians had increased by 2 years from 25 to 27 between 1992 and 2021, with the median age up to 25 from 23. The trend continued in Paris 2024, with the average age just over 27 and the median age not far behind at 26.6.

But not all sports are made equal in this regard. The oldest competitor in Paris was Australian equestrian rider Mary Hanna at 70. That sport had an average competitor age of 39.5 in Paris while rhythmic gymnastics was the lowest, at 20.44.

Another study, conducted over a 47-year period by the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and released last month, found that "fitness and strength begin to decline as early as age 35" and that increased exercise cannot change the age of peak performance in a given sport.

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"We seem to lose power —  measured by jumping ability in our study — at an earlier age than endurance and strength," Maria Westerstahl, lead author of the study, told DW.

"One explanation could be that the explosive muscle cell type (Type II) appears most vulnerable to lack of exercise or to aging itself. However, we do not know why, so the exact reason requires further study," she continued.

"However, there is considerable room for change if you remain or become active. Aerobic capacity tracks the least, while muscular endurance tracks the most, meaning that aerobic capacity requires the most maintenance to preserve."

This goes a long way to explaining why the likes of Williams, James and Ronaldo are such outliers in the top echelons  of sports where power matters, whereas sports like equestrian, bowls or darts see players in their 40s, 50s or even older compete at the elite level.

"Darts is not a sport where you need to be really strong. All you need is to basically be healthy," darts player Paul Lim said after becoming the oldest player to win a match at the World Championship this year at the age of 71.

"Longevity is something in darts that will be longer than a lot of other sports."

Though Lim won a match, the title was won by 18-year-old prodigy Luke Littler. Realistically, winning a match or two, rather than a first Australian Open, might be all that Williams can achieve in Melbourne.

"If you look at the top 100 Tennis player lists over the last 30 years, for both men and women, the maximum age appears not to exceed 40," Chomik said.

"Perhaps it becomes a distinction between participating and winning."